Via Lucis

  

As a complement to the Via Crucis, the Way of the Cross, there has arisen in recent times the devotion of the Via Lucis: meditation on the glorious mysteries of the Lord, namely, the events between the Resurrection and Pentecost.

We learn to walk in the world as “children of the light,” witnesses of the Risen Lord.

The one who presides invites all present to meditate upon the resurrection of Christ.

 

First Station: Jesus Rises from the Dead 

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay (Mt 28:5-6).  

As dawn breaks, a mysterious face presents itself to the women who with sadness and love came early to the sepulcher of Jesus of Nazareth.  It is the angel, the messenger of God, that reveals the glory of him who has passed beyond the frontier of death:  the grave is open, Christ is risen and now lives for ever in heaven, where he awaits us.   

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ...Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Second Station: The Disciples Find the Empty Sepulcher

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

The disciple who had reached the tomb first entered, and he saw and believed (Jn 20:8). 

Peter and the beloved disciple ran together that morning to the tomb of Jesus. The disciple sees only the winding cloth and a shroud.  Not only does this cause surprise, but through faith “he saw and believed” in the Lord, the one who had overcome death. All those who believe in Christ through faith see and believe.

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Third Station: The Risen Lord Appears to Mary Magdalene  

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

Jesus said to her: “Mary!”  She turned and said him: “Rabboni!” which means “Master.”  (Jn 20:16).  

Mary of Magdala, who had been in the company of Jesus for many months, who had listened to him and saw his hands stretched out to heal the sick, does not recognize him on Easter morning. It is necessary to be called by name as a personal vocation, because only the eyes of faith can see what the purely human gaze cannot understand.

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

   

Fourth Station: The Risen Lord Appears On the Road to Emmaus

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

“Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself (Lk 24:26-27).

Two disciples are walking along the road that leads from Jerusalem to Emmaus and a stranger joins them. His words reveal a depth of meaning that has until now been hidden.    Those who listen to those words will find that their hearts burn within them and bring hope and trust.

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

   

Fifth Station: The Risen Lord Is Recognized in the Breaking of the Bread

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

As he sat at dinner with them, he took the bread and blessed it and broke it and gave it them.  And their eyes were opened and they recognized him  (Lk 24:30-31).

It is evening. The two disciples of Emmaus have invited that mysterious traveler to their table.  He has explained to them the meaning of the events which they had lived through. After his words come his actions: He breaks the bread, the same gesture as at the Last Supper. That face becomes unexpectedly recognizable:  He is still the Christ of the Upper Room, giving his body  and blood as food for the life of the world.  

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

   

Sixth Station: The Risen Lord Appears to the Disciples

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

Why are you troubled? And why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet: It is I myself  (Lk 24:38-39).  

At first they fear that they are seeing a ghost, for they still think that Jesus is buried in the tomb with the marks of his passion and crucifixion. But no, there he is, alive with the fullness of life, standing before his friends, with hands and feet bearing the marks of the wounds. This new life dispels the sadness, doubt and the sorrow and points to what lies beyond the silence of the grave.  

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

   

Seventh Station: The Risen Lord Gives the Power to Forgive Sins            

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

He breathed on them and said to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit; those whose sins you shall forgive, they will be forgiven” (Jn 20:22-23).

Jesus breathes on his disciples as a sign of the life that is given to them. It is the sign of the regeneration that only the Holy Spirit can bring about in every individual through death to sin and new life in truth and justice. When this divine breath blows in the Church it brings about the renewal, transformation and sanctification of humanity.  

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Eighth Station: The Risen Lord Strengthens the Faith of Thomas 

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

Jesus said to Thomas: “Be not faithless, but believing.”  Thomas answered: “My Lord and my God!”  (Jn 20:27-28). 

Doubt had entered the heart of the disciple who had listened to Jesus and seen the signs of his divine power during his days on earth.  Now the Risen Lord is there, standing before Thomas, truly risen from the dead. The disciple is enlightened and makes his firm profession of faith in the words “My Lord and God.”  

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

   

Ninth Station: The Risen Lord Appears by the Lake of Tiberias

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

The disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter: “It is the Lord!”  Jesus then came, took bread and gave it them      (Jn 21:7,13).

Early in the morning there is a man standing on the shore of the lake of Tiberias. The disciples of Jesus had returned to their work as fishermen and were out in their boats. The beloved disciple looks at that figure on the shore and says: “It is the Lord!” Christ awaits them on the beach, ready to offer to the tired and uncertain men the bread of his presence.    

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Tenth Station: The Risen Lord Gives Peter the Primacy

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him: “Lord, you know that I love you.”  He said to him: “Feed my lambs” (Jn 21:15).

Three questions and three answers of love form the heart of the dialogue between the risen Christ and Peter on the shore of the lake of Tiberias. The disciple who denied his master three  times now professes three times his faith and love, and Christ gives him the mission to be the shepherd of his flock until the end of time. Through Peter, Christ will continue to lead his Church.  

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Eleventh Station:  The Risen Lord Sends Out the Disciples into the Whole World

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. I am with you always, till the end of the world. (Mt 28:1-20) 

On a mountain in Galilee, the glorious Christ of the resurrection greets his disciples. Though not visible, his presence will be real, effective and constant and he will always support the apostolic mission of the Church that proclaims the Gospel and gives the new life in the Spirit through the baptism. 

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.

 

Twelfth Station: The Risen Christ Ascends into Heaven

Leader:     We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you...

All:            ...Because by your Cross and Resurrection you have redeemed the world. 

Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up to heaven? This Jesus, who is taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same manner as you have seen him go into heaven  (Acts 1:11).

The Mount of Olives becomes the sign of the meeting of heaven and earth, accomplished in the risen Christ. He returns to his eternal glory to await the whole of redeemed humanity. But the believer must live in this world, proclaiming and establishing the Kingdom here while awaiting the return of Christ. “And we will always be with the Lord”(1 Thess 4:17).

Our Father...

Leader:    Through the resurrection of Christ...

All:           ... Keep us in the light, O Mother of the Lord.